Vevo Picks 5 Hip-Hop “Artists to Watch” For 2022

Video streaming platform, VEVO, has done the math and are predicting these 5 up-and-coming artists will be in heavy rotation in 2022.  Check out the list and tell us if you agree.

VEVO’s Hip Hop “Artists To Watch”

Vevo’s Artist to Watch is now in its 8th year and consists of 21 global artists whom Vevo has tipped to break through to the mainstream, with 5 from the Hip-Hop/R&B genre.  Vevo’s list has successfully predicted hitmakers including Billie Eilish, Pop Smoke, and Arlo Parks.

With over 500 submissions, Vevo’s Artist to Watch is one of the most highly anticipated and competitive lists to appear on, as the artists and bands that make it receive critical exposure and promotion that help propel their careers.

Vevo’s Jordan Glickson commented to SOHH on the criteria and selection process for the list.

“We sift through over 500 submissions across different genres and countries to really come up with this final list. “There’s a lot of passionate atoned discussions in the team to whittle it down. Selecting hip hop artists has unique challenges. For some it’s one song that blows up over night — for others it’s a body of work that consistently and steadily builds a fan base.”

Jordan Glickson, VEVO

The Hip Hop and R&B artists from their list are listed below:

EST Gee

EST Gee authentically documents day-to-day life in Louisville, Kentucky, incorporating trap and other contemporary variants of the genre. His relaxed but relentless lyrical style drew attention from major labels and hard-hitting contemporaries. Since his introduction to the scene in 2017, EST Gee has collaborated with the likes of Future, Jack Harlow, Lil Dirk, Young Thug, and more.

Grip

GRIP is an American hip-hop artist from the Eastside of Atlanta, Georgia hailed as ‘Atlanta’s Next Great Storyteller’ (Pigeons & Planes). With his critically acclaimed debut project, Porch, GRIP snatched the attention of listeners and publications across the globe. In his follow up full length, His music has been placed extensively across the film & TV landscape and can be heard in Euphoria, Boomerang, Good Girls, and the Madden NFL ‘20 soundtrack. Eminem has signed Atlanta rapper GRIP to his label in partnership with Interscope Records.

ArrDee

ArrDee has exploded onto the scene with his unique flow; venting the real relatable issues wrapped up in his signature “cheeky chappy” sound. Released in March, his single ‘6 AM In Brighton’ has already amassed 6.8 million views and with the video also filmed in his hometown, it showed his audiences an alternative side to UK rap. ArrDee’s debut freestyle ‘Cheeky Bars’, a delivery of witty and humorous wordplay, has racked up over 4.6 million post-release in January. 

ENNY

Since 2020’s “Peng Black Girls” gave voice to black womens’ everyday lives and experiences, rapper Enny has cemented herself as a rising star in the UK scene, and someone eager to carve her own path both sonically and lyrically. The 24-year-old’s blend of relaxed, jazzy influences and nimble flows drawing from old school grime continues to draw wide critical acclaim, and shows emphatic promise from an artist still so early in her career. 

Chiiild

Chiiild has made a name for himself occupying a space typically not representative of Black artists within the alt/pop genre. Chiiild uses music to tell stories about diversity, ask questions about humanity, and unify people over shared personal experiences. Taking influence from music as diverse as D’Angelo, Tame Impala, Pink Floyd, and Marvin Gaye, he’s created an expansive timeless sound that is uniquely genre-bending yet still somehow reminiscent of something you’ve heard or felt before.

Seori

Lastly Seori is a South Korean R&B Artist. She made a cover of Abir’s Tango and posted it on YouTube last year. This brought her under the limelight, and Warner Brothers Korea took notice. They signed her under their artist collective called ATISPAUS. DAY6 is a very popular K-Pop band in South Korea.